WWE to Celebrate 15 Years of SmackDown on Syfy Tonight

WWE will air a special 15th Anniversary episode of SmackDown, tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Syfy. With nearly 800 original episodes, SmackDown is the second longest-running weekly episodic program in U.S. television history, only behind WWE's other flagship program, Monday Night Raw. Averaging 3.1 million viewers each week, SmackDown beats all Friday primetime viewing on any cable network.

As part of the 15th Anniversary show, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson will appear in a special segment. Tonight's SmackDown will be the 790th episode for the series. In comparison, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE has aired 766 episodes since it began in 1975, Gunsmoke aired 635 episodes from 1955-1975, Lassie aired 591 episodes from 1954-1973 and THE SIMPSONS has aired 552 episodes since it began in 1989.

As part of the festivities, celebrities including Ben Roethlisberger, Cedric The Entertainer, Kyle Busch, Snoop Dogg, William Shatner and others will share photos from their WWE experiences on their social media platforms.

Prior to the 15th anniversary episode, fans can watch the WWE NETWORK special Edge and Christian's 15th Anniversary SmackDown Show that Totally Reeks of Awesomeness, featuring WWE Hall of Famer Edge and WWE Superstar Christian, offering entertaining insight into the greatest moments from SmackDown's 15 year history. The program is now available as part of WWE Network's video-on-demand library, containing more than 2,000 hours of content.

"DID YOU KNOW" FACTS ABOUT SMACKDOWN

1. The name SmackDown came from WWE Superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's popular catchphrase, "Lay the Smackdown."
2. SmackDown has been broadcast from 170 different venues, in 148 cities and towns, in seven different countries including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Iraq, Japan, Italy and Mexico.
3. It would take more than two months of uninterrupted viewing to watch every episode of SmackDown back-to-back.
4. WWE Superstar John Cena made his WWE debut in June 2002 on SmackDown.
5. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar competed in a 60-minute Iron Man match on SmackDown in September 2003.
6. Brock Lesnar and Big Show fought to a no CONTEST when the ring collapsed after Lesnar superplexed Big Show on SmackDown in June 2003.
7. Stephanie McMahon was the first SmackDown general manager while Teddy Long has the longest total tenure as a SmackDown general manager.
8. Mr. McMahon won his only WWE Championship on SmackDown on September 16, 1999 when he defeated Triple H with Shane McMahon as special guest referee.
9. The first Friday episode of SmackDown was on September 9, 2005 and featured Batista defeating JBL in a Bull Rope Match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.

About WWE

WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE:WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 170 countries and 35 languages and reaches more than 650 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai, Munich, Dubai and Tokyo.

Additional information on WWE (NYSE:WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

Trademarks: All WWE programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, trademarks, logos and copyrights are the exclusive property of WWE and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks relating to entering into, maintaining and renewing key agreements, including television and Pay-Per-View programming and our new network distribution agreements; risks relating to the launch and maintenance of our new network; the need for continually developing creative and entertaining programming; the continued importance of key performers and the services of Vincent McMahon; the conditions of the markets in which we compete and acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within those markets; uncertainties relating to regulatory matters; risks resulting from the highly competitive and fragmented nature of our markets; uncertainties associated with international markets; the importance of protecting our intellectual property and complying with the intellectual property rights of others; the risk of accidents or injuries during our physically demanding events; risks associated with producing and travelling to and from our large live events, both domestically and internationally; risks relating to our film business; risks relating to new businesses and strategic investments; risks relating to our computer systems and online operations; risks relating to general economic conditions and our exposure to bad debt risk; risks relating to litigation; risks relating to market expectations for our financial performance; risks relating to our revolving credit facility; risks relating to the large number of shares of common stock controlled by members of the McMahon family and the possibility of the sale of their stock by the McMahons or the PERCEPTION of the possibility of such sales; the relatively small public float of our stock; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition, our dividend is dependent on a number of factors, including, among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant.

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